(Chapter 115 is a special chapter that supplements some background. This chapter connects to the plot of Chapter 114)
Due to camping in the wild, limited by ingredients and seasonings, this dinner wasn't particularly delicious.
More accurately, it was a boring dinner.
Compared to dry-eating wheat bread, it was probably just not as throat-choking.
However, compared to the taste, being able to eat a hot meal during travel was already quite a happy thing.
Since Alicia was cooking, Mabel would hide in the tent to sleep on her own, and Frieren had reached the stage of reading magic books before bed.
Stark, Sein, and Fern, the three juniors, took the initiative to take responsibility for cleaning up the scene and strongly requested the head chef to go rest.
"Aren't monks generally vegetarians?" The cleaning process was a bit boring, so Stark took the initiative to chat with Sein. "Sein, can you eat food made with meat?"
Sein held a cigarette in his mouth and cleaned up the garbage from camping: "That's a concept from how long ago... You're too rigid, Stark."
"After all, Lord Sein is a rather improper monk who has broken his vows." Fern put away the cooking utensils and followed up with a complaint. "Compared to smoking, drinking, and gambling, eating meat is probably the least serious breach of vows."
"Hey hey, I haven't lit it yet..." Sein silently put the cigarette in his mouth back into his space storage magic.
Who provoked this child again?
Sein was sweating.
"Hmm?" Fern raised her head and looked toward the ice sculpture made by Mabel, her tone hesitant. "Lord Stark, Lord Sein, it seems like there's someone approaching us..."
"Someone? Really, in this wilderness..." Sein's words stopped, his expression gradually turning serious as he stared dead at the direction Fern was looking. "No, there really is something coming over."
Stark silently drew his battle axe from behind, sweat beading on his forehead: "Who? Come out from behind the ice sculpture!"
"Don't be nervous, adventurers."
An old woman in a black robe and hood walked out from behind the ice sculpture. The black robe covered her entire body tightly. She stood with her head lowered, meeting the gazes of the three who were waiting.
"I am a monk traveling." The old woman took out a goddess pendant from the black robe and explained, "Like an ascetic monk, during my travels, I offer prayers for the villagers who died because of the demon race."
"I passed by a nearby village, but the villagers had been destroyed by the Sword Demon, and the village it went to didn't leave a single survivor."
"I sensed a magical reaction nearby, so I came to understand the situation."
After speaking, the black-robed old woman revealed a kind smile.
"So that's how it is. We're also adventurers traveling. My name is Goat Beard Monk, please give me your guidance." Sein replied with a smile and loudly responded to the black-robed old woman's words, while also raising the goddess pendant on his chest.
At the same time, Sein's hand behind his back was signaling to Fern, indicating for her to go wake up Frieren and the other two.
Stark gripped the axe handle and gave Sein a look: This guy is a demon, right?
Sein nodded, maintaining the hypocritical smile on his face.
Everything happened silently.
Inside the tent, Alicia hugged her knees, watching Frieren who was flipping through a magic book, and asked in a low voice with a worried expression: "Frieren, do we really not need to go help little Fern and the others?"
"It's fine. With their current strength, any one of them can easily deal with the Sword Demon." Frieren's expression was normal, her gaze not leaving the book.
"But..."
At this moment, from another tent, a slight rustling sound came.
The black-robed old woman lowered her gaze, her hand pressing on the sword hilt hidden in the black robe, ready at any moment to draw the sword from its sheath.
It stepped forward, closing the distance with everyone, and continued chatting: "The journey is long. Can I rest by this campfire here..."
"Hmm... Stark, where are we now?" Diego, with his back to the black-robed old woman, pressed one hand to his forehead and asked Stark about the situation. "What the hell is this place?"
The black-robed old woman, no, now it should be called the Sword Demon.
Clearly, Diego's sudden appearance had disrupted its surprise attack plan. The Sword Demon instantly released the sword hilt, its expression becoming somewhat twisted.
So fast, I couldn't even see his movements...
This person is... Scary Monsters...
Why is he still alive?!
Although its strength wasn't up to the level of the great demons, the Sword Demon had lived for a very long time. During the war against demons, it had seen Diego.
In its mind, scenes involuntarily recalled: the confidant of the Demon King, the wise man leading the future of the demon race—Schlacht being torn into pieces.
And the tragic scenes of demons being eaten by dinosaurs under mountains and seas of blood.
Run! I must escape!
To the demon race, dinosaurs were the most terrifying monsters in this world.
"And you, who are you?" Diego slightly turned his head, revealing a playful smile. "I, Dio, don't think I've met you."
"...Just a passing monk. It seems I've disturbed your camping. I'll leave first." The Sword Demon retreated backward bit by bit.
Stark subconsciously prepared to stop it, but Diego blocked his mouth with one index finger: "Master, it is..."
Subsequently, Diego walked to the side of the Sword Demon, put both hands in his pockets, and circled around it twice. Each footstep sounded like a hammer striking the Sword Demon's heart.
"Sniff... You have a corpse stench on you. It really makes me angry." Diego carefully smelled it, as if discerning the identity of the person in front of him. Then he changed the subject. "You're a demon, right?"
"No, how could I be a demon? I hate demons the most." The Sword Demon hurriedly took the goddess pendant in front of itself, as if it were a protective charm. "Look, I'm the most loyal believer of the Goddess, and I have a blood feud with demons."
"Goddess?" Diego's voice grew colder and colder. "I hate the Goddess's symbol the most!"
Bang!
Diego's face darkened, and he suddenly punched the Sword Demon's chin. The Sword Demon instantly fell to the ground, spitting out a large mouthful of blood, and a mouthful of teeth fell out.
The fist wind lifted the black robe draped over the Sword Demon, revealing the pair of horns on its head symbolizing the demon race.
"You damn Goddess-believer bastard!"
Subsequently, the sharp sounds of fists and feet breaking the wind, wrapped in screams, exploded. Diego raised his foot and kicked and stomped at the Sword Demon. Each dull thud splashed large amounts of blood beads.
"You Goddess-believer bastard, are you a demon?! Are you a demon?! Are you a demon?!"
"Too brutal..."
Sein, also a monk, was shocked and silently hid the goddess pendant inside his clothes.
"Master is so scary!"
Stark was simply afraid that Diego would hit him like this too.
"Diego-sama's integrity has dropped..."
Fern, upholding the concept of killing demons without abusing them, turned her head away.
The three's voices weren't very loud, but they didn't escape Diego's ears. He clicked his tongue in displeasure, furrowed his brows, and swept a threatening gaze around. Finally, the corners of his mouth stretched outward.
Diego stopped his foot, retreated a bit, and unceremoniously gave the order: "Wait, I'm a bit tired. You guys come and hit it!"
Stark picked up the axe, preparing to send the Sword Demon to the afterlife: "Oh oh, okay..."
"Don't use weapons. Just use your feet to kick it."
!!
The three's bodies shook. Sein's scripture disappeared, Fern put away her staff, and they looked at each other for a while without moving.
"Hmm?" Diego crossed his arms, narrowed his eyes, and silently bullied his juniors.
Stark and Sein pushed and shoved each other for a while. The two seemed to have resigned themselves and pitifully lowered their heads as they walked to the side of the Sword Demon.
"You... You're a demon, right! You're a demon, right!"
"How dare you call yourself a believer of the Goddess. Go die, go die!"
At first, Stark and Sein were still a bit restrained. After hitting for a while, the two seemed to have discovered a new world and kicked more and more energetically.
In short: they got into it.
"Are you a demon?! Are you a demon?!! Are you a demon?!!!" ×2
"Aaaah————"
It wasn't that the Sword Demon didn't want to resist, but Diego's single punch had brought out the demon's self-preservation mechanism————when injuries were severe, magic power prioritized repairing the body, which in turn led to loss of mobility.
It couldn't run, so it could only be forced to enjoy it.
Listening to the Sword Demon's screams, Diego smiled in satisfaction. Then his peripheral vision glanced at Fern, who was watching from the side with a curious face.
Diego thought for a moment and immediately clapped his hands, making a decision.
Push Fern over too!
It left a long drag mark on the ground in the process.
"Diego-sama?!" Fern couldn't believe it. The last filter she had for Diego in her heart also shattered to pieces.
"Try it. It'll be fun."
Fern extended a finger and pointed at herself.
Me?
A mage fighting a demon in close combat, really?
At this time, it seemed like an angel was whispering in her ear: Even if it's an enemy, we should give it a quick end.
"It's fine. Sein isn't a warrior monk either, just an ordinary monk, and he's still hitting, right?" But Diego was a devil. He pressed on Fern's shoulder and whispered like a devil. "Trust your own judgment. Don't let reason crush your desires. Do it..."
In the end, Fern was somewhat tempted. After convincing herself internally, she kicked with not much force: "You... You're a demon, right..."
Everyone can be cruel to their natural enemy, the demon race. Humans are really becoming more hopeful!
Diego thought so from the bottom of his heart.
[Sword Demon, after experiencing a five-minute humiliation ritual, due to magic power exhaustion and inability to repair its body, it turned into magic power particles and dissipated, confirming death.]
...
——Northern Plateau, Lufen Region——
"In other words, we have now passed through the checkpoint of the northern plateau, right?"
"Much faster than I expected. It seems you guys barely rested properly on the way..."
"After arriving at the northern plateau, the strength of the demons and monsters encountered will have a very obvious difference. The journey must have been very arduous, right?"
After dealing with the Sword Demon matter, Diego pulled Stark and the other two to talk, sitting around the campfire on wooden stakes.
"Yeah————Master! It's super tiring. Clearly you can use spirit summoning spells to come back from time to time, but since entering the northern plateau, the journey has become even more rushed!" Stark's desire to complain opened up like a floodgate, crying like a three-year-old child who couldn't get candy. "I'm not saying that meeting Master isn't important, it's just that I occasionally want to sleep comfortably in a big bed at an inn too!!"
"Stark..." Sein tugged at Stark's clothes corner without changing expression.
"Clearly there were several times we entered cities, but after replenishing supplies, we didn't stop for even a moment..."
Stark was too aggrieved and didn't notice Sein's small action, continuing to pour out the bitterness of the journey.
Diego listened carefully, occasionally showing an approving expression: "And then?"
"...Even Fern hasn't eaten dessert for a long time. The snacks bought last time we replenished supplies were long gone. Frieren doesn't sympathize with us at all! You must stand up for us, Master!"
"Lord Stark is an idiot..." Fern's face turned red.
"Eh, why?!"
Perhaps unable to stand the sour smell of the young couple's romance, Sein protested loudly: "What about me?! Stark!! Why only mention Fern?! I also haven't replenished my spiritual food for a long time!!"
"Oh my? How do you want me to stand up for you?" Diego responded with interest and gave a set of solutions. "How about I catch the culprit and spank her hard as punishment?"
"That probably isn't necessary. Frieren isn't a child..." Stark imagined the scene and suddenly shivered.
"No. According to elven age, Frieren at over a thousand years old accepting this kind of education should be just right." Diego revealed a rather disdainful smile.
It was just that in front of his juniors, Diego still wanted to preserve some dignity, so this expression didn't last long.
Sniff... sniff...
Subsequently, Diego raised his eyes to look at the distant mountain peak, spaced out for a while, and as if casually mentioning it, asked: "Hmm——Although there's no materials to make desserts now, fresh fruit shouldn't be a problem. Do you want to eat fruit?"
"Can we?" Fern asked full of hope.
"Of course. I, Dio, never go back on my word."
After leaving one sentence, Diego disappeared from the three's sight in an instant.
Not long after, accompanied by a rustling sound, Diego appeared again holding a pile of fruit. He raised his head: "Go find a container to put them in."
Stark's eyes lit up as he exclaimed: "Amazing! As expected of Master!"
"Having Diego-sama here really makes one feel at ease." Fern clenched her fists and shook them up and down slightly, looking very cute.
Sein, on the other hand, brought a clean canvas, spread it on the ground, and caught those rare fruits unique to the Northern Nations.
Subsequently, Diego rummaged through the pile of fruit and pulled out a super large gourd-shaped fruit. He held it up: "This is a fruit unique to the snow trees of the Northern Nations. As long as you wash it clean, you can eat it directly. It's very convenient and delicious. Most importantly, when you're at a dead end, eating one of these can fill your stomach. Want to try?"
"I want one!" Stark raised his hand, eager to try.
Hearing this, Diego prepared to throw it over to Stark, but his raised hand suddenly tensed up and stopped.
This strange behavior caused Stark to be puzzled: "Master?"
"Almost forgot. This thing hasn't been washed yet. Eating it directly without washing will give you a stomachache." Diego subconsciously said out the habit he had developed in the other world. "I'll go get a knife. Wait for me a bit."
When Diego first arrived in the other world, he often didn't wash fruit before eating it directly. Every time this happened, he would be stopped by Hori and then properly lectured. Over time, he also developed the habit of washing fruit.
Diego came to the outside of Frieren's tent and drilled inside.
"Smack!"
Not long after entering the tent, a slapping sound resounded through the night sky.
Not long after, Diego was kicked out by Frieren with a dissatisfied kick. In his hand, he was still gripping the Inverted Spear of Heaven.
"Well, I educated Frieren for you, Stark." Diego coughed twice, trying to save face. Then he slowly walked back to the three and sat down, picking up the Inverted Spear of Heaven to peel the fruit.
A fine horse will eventually return to its master.
The firelight flickered. Diego looked at the Inverted Spear of Heaven somewhat lost in thought. Muscle memory guided Diego to slide along the blade of the Inverted Spear of Heaven as before.
Just as he was about to touch it, his fingertip stopped in mid-air. Diego revealed a relieved smile, gripped the handle of the Inverted Spear of Heaven, and slowly peeled off the outer skin of the fruit: "Forget it. I'll peel it for you guys."
As the golden-yellow outer skin was peeled off, revealing the snow-white flesh inside, Diego swung the knife a few times, and the large piece of flesh was equally divided into several portions.
"Eat."
Under the night sky, the four ate fruit and chatted about interesting recent events with each other.
"By the way, Diego-sama, do you really hate the Goddess that much?"
"It's just ordinary. Don't worry, Sein. I discriminate equally against every Goddess believer. I won't do anything to you. And let me tell you, usually when you're idle and have nothing to do, cursing her a couple of times will make you feel much better..."
"But isn't Master (Alicia) also a monk?"
"Lord Stark is really an idiot. To Diego-sama, Alicia-sama is definitely different."
"Fern is right..."
Today's victory: all win!
(The juniors seem to understand Diego more)